The Charleston Battery battled the Tampa Bay Rowdies to a 2-2 draw at Al Lang Stadium on Wednesday. Charleston clawed back from a 1-0 deficit at halftime by scoring two goals in the second half, but a late tally for the hosts forced the points to be shared. Maalique Foster and Colton Swan were on the scoresheet for the Battery. The result moved Charleston back into the top four of the Eastern Conference standings.
Charleston and Tampa Bay kicked off after rainy conditions hammered Al Lang Stadium, which forced the game into a near-two-hour-long delay.
The match kicked off with Chris Allan officially making his 100th appearance for the Battery since joining in 2023. Allan became the second player on the team this year to eclipse 100 matches (Emilio Ycaza) and the 27th player to achieve the feat in the club’s all-time history since 1993.
No shots were recorded by either side through the first 20 minutes as both squads adjusted to the slick conditions. The first attempt was in the 26th minute by Tampa Bay’s Max Schneider, saved by Zamudio. On the other end, Joey Akpunonu tested goalkeeper Jahmali Waite in the 28th minute with a strike that was saved.
Tampa Bay managed to take a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute via Louis Perez.
Charleston almost leveled the score in the 36th minute when Miguel Berry had a big chance inside the box, but his shot hit off the woodwork. Berry again came close to equalizing in the 41st minute with an attempt on target directly from a free kick, but the shot was saved by Waite.
The Rowdies took the 1-0 lead into the break.
Play resumed after halftime with the Battery on the front foot and searching way back into the match.
After some early advances, Charleston leveled the score at 1-1 in the 55th minute when Maalique Foster scored from inside the box. Douglas Martinez lifted a cross into the box to Foster, which took an initial deflection off Laurence Wyke. Foster, however, stayed with the play and capitalized on the opportunity to knock the ball between Waite’s legs for the goal.
Foster’s tally marked his third goal of the year across all competitions.
Charleston kept up the pressure and took a 1-2 lead in the 81st minute when Miguel Berry’s shot ricocheted off Colton Swan and landed in the net. Berry did much of the legwork with his hold-up play around the edge of the box to get past Nathan Dossantos and then fired a strike toward goal, but also into a crowded space near the penalty spot. The ball deflected off Swan and went opposite Waite’s initial save attempt on Berry’s shot and then into the net.
The goal was officially credited to Swan, his eighth of the year across all competitions, with Berry being awarded an assist, his second of the year.
Charleston aimed to preserve their lead through stoppage time, but the hosts managed to level the score at 2-2 in the 91st minute via Matheus Oliveria.
Neither side was able to find a late winner in the time that remained and the points were shared, like in the first meeting, in the 2-2 draw.
The result moves the Battery’s record to 5W-4L-2D (17pts), advancing them to fourth in the Eastern Conference table.
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Maalique Foster discussed the match after the final whistle, with key quotes to follow.
Coach Pirmann on his overall assessment of the game…
It was an interesting one. It’s a tough one to evaluate because I’m proud of the boys’ effort, proud of the boys’ attitude, and proud of their performance. But in terms of the result, two games we’ve played Tampa, and we feel like we’ve dropped points. But you’ve got to give Tampa credit. That’s why they’re top of the table this season, because they’re finding ways to nip those results. That’s what good teams do, so fair credit to them.
I thought we were very, very good. [Tampa Bay] got some stuff after the two-hour delay, they got some corners and some crosses, and then, for us, a pretty inexcusable goal in transition. They just outworked us, and we knew that’s what their MO is and what they’re good at, so that was inexcusable.
But I thought we were excellent in the second half, especially our ball movement. Our bravery and our confidence were very good. We’re getting better at a back three and having those pockets. Then two big goals, Maalique [Foster], and Miguel [Berry] I think scored the second one [sic] and they kept going. Then Tampa got the equalizer in injury time, which was disappointing.
Like I said, you’ve got to give Tampa credit. It was an emotional game for both teams. I’m very proud of our club and the way we operate, very proud of the boys and the way they play. There were probably some decisions that went against us, and we just kept fighting through it, but that didn’t really have any bearing or impact on the game.
So, good performance. I would even say a very good performance. It’s disappointing not to come away with all three points, but sometimes on the road against the top team, that’s what happens.
Coach Pirmann on the contrast between the first and second half…
It was probably after the first seven, eight minutes, things settled down, and we were sharper. We were a little bit better at breaking the lines. They do a very good job of passing forward, laying it off, and finding third-man movements, so defensively we were pretty stout for most of the game. It was the transition moment where you go down, and then they had the big breakout when it was 1-0 when we got extended.
But then I thought in the second half, we got to the end line well. Maalique was a menace, Miguel was a menace, Jeremy was always finding those pockets. I thought Douglas and Nate on the wings did a good game. Maybe we just needed a little bit more, but that’s where the second half came in. We took some chances, we were assertive, just disappointed not to hold on to the lead at the end of the game.
Foster on his immediate takeaways from the match…
Today’s game was just pretty much grinding and finding a way to get a point or three points. We could have got the three points, but we dropped the points. It’s a great result, as you can see, they’re the best team right now, they’re the best team in form, they haven’t lost the game, so it was a great matchup today.
Foster on what he saw during his goal…
My whole mindset today was just to get in front of the goal, and you know, the goalkeeper is Jamaican, so I said to him, ‘I only need one chance’, and you see, I got one chance, and I put it away. I was already there, and I already was thinking about it before the game. The coaches were saying, ‘follow up for the rebound,’ so that was always in my head to score and follow that ball.
Charleston return home on Sat., June 13, to face reigning Western Conference champions FC Tulsa at Patriots Point. Tickets for the game, which will feature a post-match fireworks show, are on sale now via SeatGeek.com, the club’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
Lineups and Scoring Summary
Lineups
TBR: Waite, Acoff (Dolabella, 82’), Schaefer, Dossantos, Ostrem, Cruz, Schneider, Wyke (Leerman, 60’), Micaletto (Cicerone, 46’), Perez (Oliveira, 60’), Myers (Conway, 75’)
CHS: Zamudio, Messer, Akpunonu, Smith, Suber, Martinez, Kelly (Hughes, 90’+6), Allan (Pakhomov, 46’), Ycaza, Foster (Swan, 62’), Berry (Cabrera, 82’)
Scoring Summary
TBR – Louis Perez, 30’
CHS – Maalique Foster, 55’
CHS – Colton Swan, 81’ (Miguel Berry)
TBR – Mattheus Oliveira, 90’+1 (Charlie Ostrem)
